Irma P. Hall
Irma P. Hall | |
|---|---|
| Born | Irma Dolores Player Hall June 3, 1935 Beaumont, Texas, U.S. |
| Education | Briar Cliff College |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1973–present |
| Known for | Big Mama Joseph – Soul Food |
| Children | 2 |
Irma Dolores Player Hall (born June 3, 1935) is an American actress who has appeared in numerous films and television shows since the early–1970s. Hall is perhaps best known for playing matriarchal figures in the films such as A Family Thing, The Ladykillers and Soul Food, in which she portrayed Josephine "Big Mama Joe" Joseph, a role she reprised in the television series of the same name.
Biography
Early life
Hall was born Irma Dolores Player Hall in Beaumont, Texas, the daughter of Josephine Hall.[1] Hall was raised on Chicago, Illinois' south side.[1] Her father was a saxophone player who performed jazz music.[2] Hall attended Corpus Christi High School in the Bronzeville neighborhood[citation needed] and later Briar Cliff College in Sioux City, Iowa.[3]
Career
Hall's first acting role was in an independent film called Book of Numbers at the age of 36. Hall had been a teacher of languages for many years in Dallas, Texas when actor/director Raymond St. Jacques hired her as interim publicist for Book of Numbers. St Jacques saw her performing at a poetry reading. He liked her so much that he offered her a role in his film on the spot. Hall discovered a love for acting, and soon co-founded a repertory theatre in Dallas. Hall's personality and age made her a natural to be cast as a middle-aged, strong authority figure. She worked steadily in films and TV throughout the 1980s. But it was not until her role as the loving Aunt T. in 1996's A Family Thing that critics and audiences began to take notice of her talents. She won the Chicago Film Critics Association Award and the Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role and the success of that film helped launch Hall's career as a major supporting actress in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Sizable roles in major films such as Nothing to Lose and Steel followed. Hall then landed the role as Big Mama Joseph in the film Soul Food. The film was a hit at the box office, prompting a television spinoff, Soul Food: The Series, in which Hall reprised her role. She landed another acclaimed role when she was cast in the 2004 remake of The Ladykillers. She won a special Jury Prize at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival and an Image Award for her performance.
Personal life
Shortly before the film release of The Ladykillers, Hall was seriously injured in a car accident in Chicago. In the midst of a snowstorm, she lost control of her vehicle, crossed lanes into oncoming traffic, and hit another car head on. She underwent emergency open-heart surgery for a puncture wound to her aorta caused by a broken rib. In addition, Hall also suffered a shattered ankle and a broken arm. Hall was cited for driving with a suspended license, and not staying in her lane. She made a full recovery, and was able to continue her career. Hall lives in Dallas, Texas, with her family; she is the mother of two and the grandmother of four (as of 2001).[4]
Filmography
Film
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Dallas | Tilly | Episode: "Bar-B-Que" |
| 1979 | Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders | Dora | TV film |
| 1980 | Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders II | Dora | TV film |
| 1980 | Skyward | Mrs. Sinclair | TV film |
| 1981 | Crisis at Central High | Lulu Richards | TV film |
| 1981 | Broken Promise | Williston | TV film |
| 1984 | He's Not Your Son | Nurse Anne Hall | TV film |
| 1984 | Dallas | Rosa | Episode: "Shadow of a Doubt" |
| 1985 | The Long Hot Summer | Cecilia Howlett | TV film |
| 1986 | The George McKenna Story | TV film | |
| 1987 | Uncle Tom's Cabin | Mammy | TV film |
| 1990 | The Kid Who Loved Christmas | Mrs. Smith | TV film |
| 1992 | In the Shadow of a Killer | Foreman | TV film |
| 1993 | In the Company of Darkness | Apartment Manager | TV film |
| 1993 | Missing Persons | Mrs. Davison | Episodes: "I Can't Even Imagine", "Right Neighborhood... Wrong Door" |
| 1994 | Missing Persons | Mrs. Davison | Episode: "What Do You Want... A Signed Confession?" |
| 1995 | Wishbone | Dr. Thelma Brown | Episode: "Digging Up the Past" |
| 1996 | To Sir, with Love II | Old Woman | TV film |
| 1998 | The Love Letter | Mae Mullen | TV film |
| 1998 | Touched by an Angel | Effie Taylor | Episode: "Seek and Ye Shall Find" |
| 1998 | Getting Personal | Mrs. Buckley | Episode: "Guess Who Else Is Coming to Dinner?" |
| 1999 | A Lesson Before Dying | Miss Emma | TV film Nominated - Black Reel Award for Best Actress: T.V. Movie/Cable |
| 1999 | Judging Amy | Beverly Raymond | Episode: "An Impartial Bias" |
| 2000 | 7th Heaven | Hattie | Episode: "All By Myself" |
| 2000 | Something to Sing About | Memaw | TV film |
| 2000-2002 | Soul Food | Mama Joe | Regular role (14 episodes) |
| 2001 | A Rugrats Kwanzaa Special | Great Aunt T (voice) | TV film |
| 2001 | A Girl Thing | Alice | TV film |
| 2001 | All Souls | Nurse Glory St. Claire | Recurring role (5 episodes) Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series |
| 2002 | Our America | June Jones | TV film |
| 2002 | The Bernie Mac Show | Aunt Liva | Episodes: "Sweet Home Chicago: Parts 1 & 2" |
| 2002 | Miss Lettie and Me | Rose Griffin | TV film CAMIE Award for Best Performance |
| 2003 | An Unexpected Love | Mary | TV film |
| 2006 | Take 3 | Mildred Burnett | TV film |
| 2010-2011 | Diary of a Single Mom | Dessa | Recurring role (5 episodes) |
| 2011 | Harry's Law | Anna Nicholson | Episode: "Heat of Passion" |
| 2011 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Lorna Talcott | Episode: "Reparations" |
| 2012 | The Game | Episode: "Grand Opening, Grand Closing" | |
| 2012 | Chicago Fire | Mrs. Grady | Episode: "One Minute" |
| 2013 | Getting On | Cordelia Meade | Episode: "The Concert" |
| 2017 | Hap and Leonard | Meemaw | Regular role (6 episodes) |
Awards and nominations
- Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films
- 2005, Best Actress: The Ladykillers (Nominated)
- Black Reel Awards
- 2005, Best Actress in a Musical/Comedy: The Ladykillers (Winner)
- 2000, Best Supporting Actress in a Mini-Series/Television Movie: A Lesson Before Dying (Nominated)
- 2005, Jury Prize for Acting, Cannes Film Festival: The Ladykillers
References
- ^ a b "``SOUL FOOD MATRIARCH STRESSES FAMILY". scholar.lib.vt.edu. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
- ^ "Irma P. Hall Biography (1935-)". www.filmreference.com. Retrieved 2019-04-23.
- ^ Irma P. Hall Biography - Yahoo! Movies
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-07-20.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
External links
- Irma P. Hall at IMDb
- 1935 births
- Living people
- African-American poets
- American poets
- People from Beaumont, Texas
- Actresses from Chicago
- African-American actresses
- American television actresses
- American film actresses
- American stage actresses
- American women poets
- American women dramatists and playwrights
- American people of Nigerian descent
- American people of Ghanaian descent